A weekly dive into the pages of Colorado Politics’ predecessor, The Colorado Statesman, which started in 1898:

Forty Years Ago This Week: In a shocking move, Colorado state Rep. Bob Leon Kirscht, D-Pueblo, switched his party affiliation to Republican after thirteen years as a registered Democrat.

Consumer activist John Van Vranken blasted Kirscht for his switch in an open letter to state legislators and told Republicans to show restraint in their welcome because, “once (I mean twice) a turncoat, always a turncoat.” Vranken continued to state that it was obvious that Kirscht’s move was less principled and more opportunistic.

But Vranken’s warnings seemed not to have swayed the Republican caucus.

“The Democrats are out of step with the mainstream of thinking in Colorado,” Kirscht said, explaining his party switch to a reporter for The Colorado Statesman. “The issue is whether the interests of my constituents in Pueblo come first or partisan politics.”

Kirscht said that it had become obvious to him that he’d be able to better represent Pueblo as a Republican.

“If I had stayed in the Democratic party,” Kirscht said, “I would have been viewed as an antagonist, an obstructionist, a negative figure.”

Kirscht referred to the House leadership battle where he was removed from his position as minority leader. Kirscht said it was in a secret meeting of Denver Democrats where Gov. Dick Lamm played a central role in orchestrating his defeat.

“What shuts people off the most,” he said, “is when people act in the same manner as they criticize others for acting. I believe that representatives should have the independence to be individuals and represent their districts and their constituents. And because I felt that way, I got rolled.”

Although Kirscht expressed optimism about his chances of running for re-election as a Republican, he was already facing opposition from organized labor in Pueblo.

“I’m not anti-union,” Kirscht said. “People have a right to have their collective views heard. But I don’t intend to be bullied around by the union leadership. I intend to communicate directly with the working people of my district.”

In other news, campaign strategist and candidate for vice-chair of the state Democratic Party Mike Stratton was placing ads in the personals section of the Rocky Mountain News in a strange but effective departure from normal campaign operations.

“Democrats … Experienced native Durangoan seeks your support for Vice-Chairmanship of State Democratic Party. Responsibility and hard work. Mike Stratton,” the classified ad read.

In an effort to lure workers for his campaign, Stratton had also placed an ad in The Denver Post and reportedly had already more than a dozen calls from those willing to sign on to his campaign.

“I came up with the catchiest phrasing I could,” Stratton said.

And “catchy,” it needed to be, because another political heavyweight, Floyd Ciruli, had also announced he was running for the vice-chairmanship.

Fifteen Years Ago: Denver Archbishop Charles Chaput and Bishops Arthur Tafota (Pueblo) and Michael Sheridan (Colorado Springs) published an advertisement in The Colorado Statesman calling on the Colorado General Assembly to end the state’s legal inequities in dealing with Catholic church’s handling of childhood sexual abuse while ignoring public institutions.

Several legislators had introduced bills that would eliminate or modify existing statues of limitation which would ensure that a victim could wait decades before filing a suit for damages “against Catholic institutions and other private entities in Colorado.”

The bishops argued that sovereign immunity shouldn’t exist for public schools and that the application, “sharply limits a family’s ability to sue a public school district, or similar public institutions, for the sexual abuse of their child or any other damaging activity.”

According to the bishops, state law stipulated that the victim of a public school teacher’s misconduct must file a claim no later than 180 days after the incident.

“On a matter as ugly and grave as the sexual abuse of minors, exactly the same civil and criminal penalties, financial damages, time frames for litigation and statues of limitations should apply against both public and private institutions and their agents,” the article concluded. “That’s fair, that’s just, and it serves the ultimate safety of all our young people.”

Rachael Wright is the author of the Captain Savva Mystery series, with degrees in Political Science and History from Colorado Mesa University, and is a contributing writer to Colorado Politics and the Colorado Springs Gazette.